It’s almost Christmas and that means that many of us will be putting our craft skills to use. Crafting is something I really enjoy, but I’m still very much learning. These are a few of my family’s favorite Christmas crafts. At the end of this post I am also including a special recipe for a birthday cake for Jesus. I hope you enjoy this post and maybe give these crafts a try in your own home. They’re sure to being a little Christmas cheer to your family as they have done mine for many years.
When I was 6 years old, we made homemade ornaments for the first time. We have done it several times since and it is always loads of fun! It is such a special keepsake and they each hold a sweet memory of making them and decorating them. I hope you will try these too with your family!
Homemade Ornaments:
1 cup salt
2 cups flour
1 cup water
Mix flour and salt in a bowl. Add water, a little at a time. Knead dough 7-10 minutes until smooth and pliable. (I’m sure that you could do this in a stand mixer.) Color after kneading if desired. **We always left ours the original color and painted them after they baked and cooled.**
Use cookie cutters to make shapes and place on a baking sheet- you may want to spray with nonstick spray to avoid a mess. Bake at 325*F for 30 minutes or until hard. (If you want a hole to put ribbon or string, do thins BEFORE you bake them. Or you can hot glue a ribbon to the back when done.)
Decorate when cool with paint or other decorations.
Scented Cinnamon Cutouts:
1 (4 oz.) jar of cinnamon (check the Dollar Tree for your spices!)
1 tbsp. ground cloves
1 tbsp. nutmeg
3/4 cup applesauce
2 tbsp. white glue (like Elmer’s)
1 drinking straw
In a medium bowl, combine cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg. Stir in applesauce and glue until combined. Work mixture with hands for 2-3 minutes or until the dough is smooth and the ingredients are thoroughly mixed. Divide dough into 4 equal parts. Roll each into 1/4 inch thickness. Cut dough to desired shapes using cookie cutters. Make a hole with the straw- it may need to be a bit larger than the straw hole. Let ornaments dry at room temperature for 3 or more days, turning over each day, until dry. Insert a ribbon through the hole and decorate if you want.
**You could probably bake these at a low temperature until dry, but we’ve never done that.**
Milk-Carton Gingerbread Houses:
One of the most fun things that we have done at Christmas time is making homemade gingerbread houses. These are not the kind that you buy a kit at the store for, or that you bake cookie-like things in the oven.
We use milk cartons of different sizes. At the grocery store the half and half cartons and heavy cream cartons are the perfect size as well as the half-gallon milk carton. And the best part is that many of the supplies can be bought at the dollar store. (Note- the first parts of this are probably for the adults, not little kids 
) This is the perfect activity for children of all ages on those cold Christmas days. (I still have fun doing this!)
How to make your own Gingerbread House:
1. First cut off the top part of the milk carton so it has a “roof-like” top. (see picture above.)
2. Using a hot glue gun, glue graham crackers- you may have to cut some to make them fit right.
3. Now the fun begins- using white icing (or colored if you like), cover the whole house with the “glue”.
4. Decorate with all different kinds of candies, icings, and cookies.
5. We let ours set out for the entire winter up on a shelf and they lasted perfectly fine. So now all you have to do is display your very own Gingerbreadville!
A Special Birthday Cake for Jesus:
This is a wonderful recipe for a birthday cake for Jesus. Perfect to do with children of all ages. I love how it also includes meanings and symbols for different things in Christ’s birth, life, and death.
1. The shape of the cake is round, representing the fact that Jesus and His love are eternal- never ending. It also is a symbol for the earth.
Bottom layer: Black (chocolate) representing the fact that all men have sinned. This is the reason Jesus came to earth.
Center layer: Red (strawberry or cherry flavored with red food coloring) symbolizing Jesus’ blood that was shed for our sin.
Top layer: Green (pistachio flavor with green food coloring) denotes the new life we have in Christ after our sins have been washed away.
(NOTE: we did not use flavored cake mixes, except for chocolate. For the center and top layer we just used white cake mix with food coloring.)
2. The frosting is pure white standing for the righteousness and purity of Christ.
3. A border of red hearts stands for brothers and sisters united in Christ circling the earth as His witnesses.
4. On top is a gold or yellow star typifying the star that shone heralding His birth and lighting the way to where it had taken place. This should be the six pointed star of David. Six is the number of man and shows us that the grace of God includes us all, not only the Jewish people whose Messiah is OUR SAVIOR.
5. In the center on top is one large red candle. Dad or grandpa reads the Christmas story from Luke or some of the children who have memorized it may enjoy reciting it. Then we light the candle and sing happy birthday to Jesus.
After everyone has taken their smaller green candle and lit it from the middle red one representing Jesus, they put it in the top of the cake. This represents the fact that we are all to be the light of the world.
(Taken from a church cookbook)
I want to wish you all a very blessed and merry Christmas. May the Lord richly bless you and your families this season as we remember and celebrate the glorious birth of our Savior. From my tender Tennessee home to yours, Merry Christmas, dear friends!
Making Your Own Christingle (a Christmas craft/decoration)
God With Us
Breakfast Ideas for Christmas Morning
The Real Christmas Story
What do the Christmas decorations represent?
Why I Believe in Celebrating Christmas
Christmas Traditions for the Family
